Ex vivo dual perfusion of an isolated cotyledon of human placenta: history and future challenges

Abstract This is an introductory chapter for the Special Issue: Ex vivo dual perfusion of an isolated cotyledon of the human placenta. It covers the early stages of development of this technique in the laboratory of Professor Maurice Panigel. It was successfully further developed by Henning Schneider during his stay in Paris as a research assistant. Together with Professor Joseph Dancis in New York they managed to overcome initial problems of acceptance. Its value was finally confirmed by studies performed by several groups in different parts of the world and it became a valuable additional tool for research on the human placenta.